Bed guard rail



M. B. GRUBER BED GUARD RAIL June 17, 1952 Filed April 5, 1950 Fig. 2

m M 7 3 w. a L w M l; x a I15 2 m 2 y s 2 m7. a 2 v 3 H 3 Me/cora B. Gruber Patented June 17, 1952 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE BED GUARD RAIL Melcora B. Gruber, Westminster, Md.

Application April 3, 1950, Serial No. 153,720

5 Claims. 1

This invention relates generally to furniture and more particularly to a portable bed guard assembly securable to a side rail of a bedstead.

A primary object of this invention is to provide a means for preventing small children from rolling or climbing from a bed wherein they have been placed, and also to prevent invalided and incapitated persons of older years from falling out of bed.

A secondary object is to provide a bed guard assembly, the units of which are each collapsible, by folding, into comparatively small space so that the same may be more easily shipped, stored, and carried in automobiles.

Another object is to provide a bed guard assembly which will allow the easy entry of persons into the bed and which allows full access to the bedclothing when the guard rails are swung outwardly and downwardly into inoperative positions,

Yet another object of this invention is to provide improved means for accomplishing the rigid support of the guard rails when employed as such, while allowing easy unfastening of the guard rails and pivotal movement thereof into an inoperative position at the side of the bed, the fastening means per se being ordinarily hidden by the bedclothing so as to decrease the likelihood of unwanted tampering with the fastening means.

Another object of this invention is to provide special bracket mounting means for the bed guard rails, the means for securing these brackets to the side rail of the bedstead being hidden from view when the device is being used, thus decreasing the likelihood of tampering or accidental loosening of the brackets.

And a last object to be mentioned specifically is to provide a bed guard assembly which is relatively inexpensive and practicable to manufacture, which is simple, safe and convenient to use, and which gives generally efficient and durable service.

With these and other objects in view, this invention resides in certain novel features of construction, combination and arrangement of elements and portions as will be hereinafter described in detail in the specification, particularly pointed out in the appended claims, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings which form a material part of the specification, and in which:

Figure l is a perspective view of a bed with this invention operatively applied thereon;

Figure 2 is a vertical, fragmentary sectional view taken substantially upon the line 2--2 in Figure 1; and

Figure 3 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view, on an enlarged scale, taken substantially on the line 3-3 of Figure 2.

Similar characters of reference designate similar or identical elements and portions throughout the specification and throughout the different views in the drawings.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, the environment in which this invention is adapted to be used will ordinarily include a bed generally indicated at I 0, the essential cooperating element in this bed being the pair of side rails of the bedstead, one of which is indicated at l2. It should be here stated that the particular shape of the side rails I2 of the bedstead will determine the particular shape and dimension of certain portions of this invention, the embodiment disclosed representing a construction in which the side rail of the bedstead is of simple character and rectangular in cross-section. It is believed that modifications of this invention to adapt the same to other bedstead rails will come within the province of ordinary mechanical skill.

The bedguard assembly includes a unit structure which may be duplicated, one for each side of a bed, or used singly as on one side of a bed. Therefore, this description will be limited to the description of a single unit such as either one of those units shown in Figure 1. The term assembly will be used to describe the complete unit as represented on either one side of the bed in Figure l. The assembly includes a bracket generally indicated at M, provided in duplicate, adjacent each end of the assembly, and a bed guard rail, generally indicated at It, is supported, in part, by the brackets l4.

Each bed guard rail I6 is comprised of an upper elongated member in two sections l1 and I8 hinged at H! and a lower elongated member in two sections 20 and 2| hinged at 22, with vertical slats 0r panels 23 secured to and between the sections I! and 2D and to and between the sections l8 and 2|. The brackets M are each comprised of a generally inverted U-shaped strap of inflexible material 24, the lower portion of which fits over the bedstead rail [2 and the upper or bight portion of which receives outer end portions of the sections 25 and 26 of a baseboard 21 the sections being hinged as at 21. The sections 20 and 2| of said lower member are hinged to the sections 25 and 26 of said baseboard 21 by hinges 28. Transverse bolts 30 will be used to secure the outer end portions of the base board sections rigidly within the bight portion of the brackets I4. It should be here carefully noted that the hinges 28 connect the guard rail 16 indirecly with the brackets l4.

Fastening means is provided for securing the bed guard rail I6 in upright position upon the top of the baseboard 21, this means comprising a plurality of swingin latch bars 32, each pivoted on the sections 20 and 2| of the lower elongated member of the bed guard rail and having a hook end 34 adapted to engage headed members 36 on the inside of the baseboard 21. The latch bars 32 are, of course, disengageable from the headed members 36 to allow the bed guard rail to swing outwardly and downwardly beside the rail l2 of the bedstead. Similar latch bars 31 and 38 are similarly mounted on and between corresponding sections of the bed guard rail 16 and the sections of the baseboard 21, respectively.

The means for securing the brackets on the bedstead rail l2 comprises a screw clamp 40 operatively mounted on the inside portion of each bracket M, which inside portion will be preferably offset inwardly as indicated at 42 in Figure 3, and each screw clamp 40 will have a rail engaging member 44 carried thereby to lessen injury to the inside surface of the bedstead rail. Finally, the lower edge of the baseboard 21 and the lower inside surface of the outer flange portion of the bracket [4 will be lined with deformable material 46 such as felt to further lessen injury to the bedstead rail. It will be noted that the bedclothing 48 will ordinarily cover the latch bars 32, while the screw clamps 46 will be located in such a position as to discourage tampering therewith by older children, while also lessening the likelihood of inadvertent loosening of the screw clamps.

The operation of this invention will be clearly understood from a consideration of the foregoing description of the mechanical details thereof, taken in connection with the above referred to objects and the drawing. It will be clear that all the objects recited above are amply achieved by this invention and further description would apinvention, what is 2. A portable bed guard assembly comprising brackets removably securable to a side rail of a bedstead, a baseboard secured to and extending between said brackets, and a guard rail hinged to said baseboard, said guard rail being hinged for outward and downward swinging from an operative vertical position, and latch means for fastening the guard rail to the baseboard to hold the guard rail in said Vertical position.

3. An assembly according to claim 2 and wherein said latch means comprises swinging latch bars having hook ends, and headed members on said baseboard to engage said hook ends, the latch bolts and members being on the inside of the assembly and located so as to be covered by be'dclothing when the device is in use.

4. A portable bed guard assembly comprising brackets removably securable to a side rail of a bedstead, a baseboard secured to and extending between said brackets, and a guard rail hinged to said baseboard, said brackets each comprising an inverted U-shaped inflexible strap, said baseboard being secured within the bight portions of the brackets and extending between the brackets, and a screw clamp on each bracket to fasten said brackets on the side rail of a bed.

5. An assembly according to claim 4 and wherein said baseboard and said guard rail are each comprised of sections hinged together so that the sections of the baseboard and the sections of the guard rail are respectively foldable on each other about an axis transverse their longitudinal axis when the assembly is detached from a bed.

MELCORA B. GRUBER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 421,656 Blanken Feb. 18, 1890 2,195,955 Hillenbrand Apr. 2, 1940 

